how much water do you drink a day

katermari
katermari Posts: 137 Member
in Food and Nutrition
I used to drink 5L a day, now I barely drink 1 :neutral:
how much water do you drink, how do you remind yourself to drink it?
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Replies

  • hesn92
    hesn92 Posts: 5,967 Member
    I have no idea lol. I drink other things besides water too, so I'm not really sure what to count when people ask how much water I drink. I would guess I probably drink about 50-70 oz of plain water a day plus coffee, gatorade, sometimes diet soda. tea. I'm plenty hydrated.
  • ElizabethKalmbach
    ElizabethKalmbach Posts: 1,416 Member
    I have low blood pressure and *do* track water, both by urine color as @apullum does and via MFP. (If I'm dehydrated, my bp drops into "stand up and faint" range, and that's annoying and totally unsuitable for my personality.) I usually end up at about 3-4 quarts of water per day (I drink out of a quart jar, so it's easy enough to track and log - I usually end up refilling it once per "meal time" with an extra one worked in after cardio. This past week has been more toward the 4qt/gallon range now that the air is suuuuuper dry in my house since the furnace kicked on.
  • LyndaBSS
    LyndaBSS Posts: 6,964 Member
    I drink 80 ounces. I lean towards dehydration so I try to stay well hydrated.
  • RelCanonical
    RelCanonical Posts: 3,882 Member
    I don't really keep track. I just drink until my urine shows that I am well hydrated. It's usually pretty easy because I keep a cup with a straw and drink to keep my hands busy. It will depend on the day because some days I have a higher salt intake and it takes me a bit more to become fully hydrated.
  • mechancete
    mechancete Posts: 4 Member
    I am trying the idea of drinking a half ounce for every pound of weight to help feel full and encourage weight loss. I am recently actively working on my weight/health again, so I am not up to my goal of 135 oz (as of my weight this morning), but I am consistently getting 64-96. Before the focus, 32-48 was norm.
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,876 Member
    katermari wrote: »
    I used to drink 5L a day, now I barely drink 1 :neutral:
    how much water do you drink, how do you remind yourself to drink it?

    Enough to keep hydrated. That's the only thing that is important. There is no magical amount of water to drink. My hydration needs vary depending on what I'm doing, time of year, etc. I drink a lot more water in the summer when I'm cycling in 100+F temperatures than I do this time of year when I'm cycling in 35F temperatures...sweat a lot more when it's hot.
  • maureenkhilde
    maureenkhilde Posts: 850 Member
    I kind of track, and do have a tendency towards getting dehydrated if I do not watch it. So generally counting all liquids between 80 and 110. Because really coffee, tea, diet soda really has lots of water in it anyway so I do not differeniate between that and just plain old water.
  • skinnycow1234567
    skinnycow1234567 Posts: 167 Member
    1 -1.5 gallons a day
  • RelCanonical
    RelCanonical Posts: 3,882 Member
    cwolfman13 wrote: »
    katermari wrote: »
    I used to drink 5L a day, now I barely drink 1 :neutral:
    how much water do you drink, how do you remind yourself to drink it?

    Enough to keep hydrated. That's the only thing that is important. There is no magical amount of water to drink. My hydration needs vary depending on what I'm doing, time of year, etc. I drink a lot more water in the summer when I'm cycling in 100+F temperatures than I do this time of year when I'm cycling in 35F temperatures...sweat a lot more when it's hot.

    I'm not saying you specifically aren't hydrating enough, but hydration needs during exercise are going to be similar in warm and cold weather once you get going. The sweat just evaporates faster in colder weather because the air is drier. I nearly passed out from dehydration during winter camp as a kid because I held the thought that if I'm not sweating, I'm not losing hydration, but that's not the case.
  • LeannJeffers
    LeannJeffers Posts: 486 Member
    I'm the same as most of the comments on here. I drink when I'm thirsty and I also watch my urine color. I will up my water the day after going out drinking or if I have something high in sodium.
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,876 Member
    RelCanonical wrote: »
    cwolfman13 wrote: »
    katermari wrote: »
    I used to drink 5L a day, now I barely drink 1 :neutral:
    how much water do you drink, how do you remind yourself to drink it?

    Enough to keep hydrated. That's the only thing that is important. There is no magical amount of water to drink. My hydration needs vary depending on what I'm doing, time of year, etc. I drink a lot more water in the summer when I'm cycling in 100+F temperatures than I do this time of year when I'm cycling in 35F temperatures...sweat a lot more when it's hot.

    I'm not saying you specifically aren't hydrating enough, but hydration needs during exercise are going to be similar in warm and cold weather once you get going. The sweat just evaporates faster in colder weather because the air is drier. I nearly passed out from dehydration during winter camp as a kid because I held the thought that if I'm not sweating, I'm not losing hydration, but that's not the case.

    That hasn't really been my experience in the last 7 years I've been cycling. Maybe for the ride itself, but in summer I continue to run hot after a ride for a couple of hours or more...when I stop in the driveway to put my bike away, I can literally make a small puddle with the sweat coming off of me and my cycling kit will have splotches of white from the salt...in the winter my body temperature comes down pretty quickly after a ride. I live in the high desert so the air is always dry here. I have to drink a lot more in the summer to keep my urine straw colored vs winter.
  • RovP6
    RovP6 Posts: 108 Member
    I drink 4 litres a day most days, sometimes 3 but it can be tricky sometimes getting the timing right depending on where I am. Drinking that much at my age means I don't go longer than an hour between pees so if I'm driving for longer than an hour I need to plan my pee stops. If your concerend about how much fluid you use during a workout weigh yourself before and after. Any change will more than likely be due to fluids.
  • apullum
    apullum Posts: 4,838 Member
    mechancete wrote: »
    I am trying the idea of drinking a half ounce for every pound of weight to help feel full and encourage weight loss. I am recently actively working on my weight/health again, so I am not up to my goal of 135 oz (as of my weight this morning), but I am consistently getting 64-96. Before the focus, 32-48 was norm.

    Water intake does not encourage fat loss. It may help some people feel full or not eat when they don't really want to eat, but it does not directly contribute to fat loss. Fat loss is 100% caused by consistently being in a calorie deficit.
  • NovusDies
    NovusDies Posts: 8,940 Member
    I drink too much for the amount of food I also get with a high water content. I am almost always over-hydrated and making unnecessary trips to the restroom. One of these days I may need to address this but for now I just watch it on days I know I will not have access or easy access to relieve myself.
  • BarbaraHelen2013
    BarbaraHelen2013 Posts: 1,940 Member
    edited November 2019
    As actual water, none. I drink black coffee, fruit infusion teas, very occasionally, Diet Coke and eat lots of vegetables, salad vegetables and some fruit.

    Never had any issues with hydration.

    Way too many myths and formula out there in fake-medicine-land about water intake!
  • Shortgirlrunning
    Shortgirlrunning Posts: 1,020 Member
    I don’t track my water. I drink when I’m thirsty or if I feel hungry but it’s not meal tome I will drink drinking something before getting a snack. But I don’t have any specific number I’m trying to hit.
  • aries68mc
    aries68mc Posts: 173 Member
    It varies. 48 - 64 oz is minimum.
  • sijomial
    sijomial Posts: 19,811 Member
    RelCanonical wrote: »
    cwolfman13 wrote: »
    katermari wrote: »
    I used to drink 5L a day, now I barely drink 1 :neutral:
    how much water do you drink, how do you remind yourself to drink it?

    Enough to keep hydrated. That's the only thing that is important. There is no magical amount of water to drink. My hydration needs vary depending on what I'm doing, time of year, etc. I drink a lot more water in the summer when I'm cycling in 100+F temperatures than I do this time of year when I'm cycling in 35F temperatures...sweat a lot more when it's hot.

    I'm not saying you specifically aren't hydrating enough, but hydration needs during exercise are going to be similar in warm and cold weather once you get going. The sweat just evaporates faster in colder weather because the air is drier. I nearly passed out from dehydration during winter camp as a kid because I held the thought that if I'm not sweating, I'm not losing hydration, but that's not the case.

    My hydration needs during summer can be x3 compared to my winter needs.
    The difference in perspiration rates is the major factor for me and that's more temperature related than humidity for my typical weather patterns. In cool weather I can cycle 100k on two bottles, in hot weather six bottles might not be enough.

    To answer the OP.
    As you can tell my hydration needs vary enormously but I don't feel any compulsion to either track my daily intake or to force a certain amount of water down. Like most people my thirst response works fine and the frequency and colour of urination is a good guide too.
    The only "reminder" I might need is on a particularly long bike ride when I might wonder when was the last time I needed/wanted to pee.

    The "rules" around so many ounces for your bodyweight might be of interest in a hospital setting but I don't get this fashion around counting your water intake or forcing down a certain amount unless someone actually has issues in maintaining within the wide range of healthy hydration.
  • ladyreva78
    ladyreva78 Posts: 4,080 Member
    At least 2L per day.

    Count me as another one with blood pressure problems. It's really no fun standing up from your desk because a patient walks into the office needing something from you, and you black out. It's all kinds of worse when I drink less than 2 liters. 3 is better to keep the pressure stable. So even if I'm not thirsty and my urine is a pale straw color, I still drink.


    (and yes, my doctor is aware of the problem. I simply have a smidgen bigger medical problems to solve first)

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